Shigellosis (Shigella spp.) 2012 Case Definition

NOTE: A surveillance case definition is a set of uniform criteria used to define a disease for public health surveillance. Surveillance case definitions enable public health officials to classify and count cases consistently across reporting jurisdictions. Surveillance case definitions are not intended to be used by healthcare providers for making a clinical diagnosis or determining how to meet an individual patient’s health needs.

CSTE Position Statement(s)

11-ID-19

Clinical Description

An illness of variable severity characterized by diarrhea, fever, nausea, cramps, and tenesmus. Asymptomatic infections may occur.

Laboratory Criteria For Diagnosis

Suspect: Detection of Shigella from a clinical specimen using a non-culture based method.

Confirmed: Isolation of Shigella from a clinical specimen.

Case Classification

Suspected

A case that meets the suspect laboratory criteria for diagnosis.

Probable

A clinically compatible case that is epidemiologically linked, i.e., is a contact of a confirmed case or a member of a risk group defined by public health authorities during an outbreak.

Confirmed

A case that meets the confirmed laboratory criteria for diagnosis. When available, O antigen serotype characterization should be reported.

Comments

Both asymptomatic infections and infections at sites other than the gastrointestinal tract, if laboratory confirmed, are considered confirmed cases that should be reported

Related Case Definition(s)

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Last Reviewed: April 16, 2021

Source: Office of Public Health Data, Surveillance, and Technology